I didn't recognize his voice at first, and asked in confusion, "Who are you...?"
“I am Liu Xiazhi. I must say, you’re quite capable. In a short period of time, I’ve gathered over a hundred men on my territory, and there’s even a leader who offered to pay me to take people from here. But after inquiring, I found out it was to deal with you, so I took the money right away!”
I:"……"
Liu Xiazhi laughed and said, "Don't worry, I've already driven those people away for you."
I breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thanks." I never imagined that Liu Xiazhi would have such strength in less than a month or two. As for the idea of taking money and not doing the job, there's no need to ask; it must have been Qin Hui who came up with it for him.
By 10 o'clock, the whole city was buzzing with the news. Lei Lao Si wasn't just a notorious gangster; he was also a figure of immense wealth and power. To be wiped out in less than half an hour was legendary. Lei Lao Si was frantically gathering his men, reportedly summoning a large group of old thugs who had fought alongside him out of politeness. These men were his most loyal followers, practically his personal guard, and they were currently converging on the outskirts. We were all eagerly anticipating this, but nothing happened for a long time. Er Pang called me: "These guys passed by my door, and when I heard they were after you, I just dealt with them for you."
In fact, this kind of thing kept happening all night. Lei Laosi had maintained his power for decades and naturally had many men under his command, but tonight he just couldn't amount to anything. On their way back, the heroes questioned any small gatherings they encountered, and all of Lei Laosi's men were beaten and driven away. Even Jiang Menshen had to help me get rid of two of them at his restaurant.
Chapter Sixty: Hostage Exchange
This was destined to be an unusual night. Lei Laosi's decades-long foundation had been destroyed in an instant, and everyone on the streets was talking about it. Almost the entire city's police force was mobilized. But the blame could only fall on Lei Laosi. The "good guys" were few in number, and all carried teacher's certificates; the 300 were treated like soldiers, so the police naturally couldn't catch them. Lei Laosi's men, however, were a different story. At this point, he could only gather small-time thugs who had previously blindly followed him, all with tattoos and carrying small knives. Who else would the police arrest if not them?
As the operation drew to a close, I felt lost. Lei Laosi had been defeated, but that wasn't what I wanted. What about Baozi? There was still no way to resolve this matter.
Just as everyone was returning to school, Fang Zhenjiang walked in, grabbing someone by the neck, and shouted, "Xiao Qiang, do you know this kid?"
When I looked at the man, I saw that he was not old, and he was wearing a thick and long gold chain around his neck. He was being held by Fang Zhenjiang and was trying to remain calm, but his body was trembling. It was Lei Ming, the son of Lei Lao Si. I had met him once before when we were negotiating.
I was overjoyed and asked, "How do we catch this kid?"
Fang Zhenjiang said a little embarrassedly, "Hehe, it's all thanks to Yuanyuan."
I glanced at Tong Yuan, who was fixing her hair and said, "I saw this kid running around surrounded by a group of people, so I knew he was an important person. But all the heavy lifting was done by Zhenjiang."
I laughed and said, "You're amazing!"
Tong Yuan said proudly, "Don't forget, I majored in bodyguarding."
Lei Ming looked at us in alarm and asked, "What do you want to do?"
I crouched down and looked at him, asking, "Do you still recognize me?"
Lei Ming finally dared to look me in the eye and said loudly, "Isn't your wife called Baozi (Steamed Bun)?" It seems that Baozi left a deep impression on him.
I said, "Yes, the person your dad kidnapped was my wife."
Lei Ming asked, bewildered, "Kidnapping?" His face was flushed, and his breath reeked of alcohol. Wu Yong whispered in my ear, "This kid probably doesn't know anything."
I patted Lei Ming's face and said, "Where did your father put my wife?"
Lei Ming, still looking half-dead, said, "...I don't know."
"You didn't know your father was planning to deal with me?"
Lei Ming scratched his head and said, "I've vaguely heard about it. It has nothing to do with me. You've seen it yourself. I'm just a good-for-nothing who lives a life of leisure. They never tell me anything about their affairs."
I stood up and said, "Who knows how to interrogate a criminal? Let's get the truth out of him."
Yan Jingsheng said from the side, "Don't hit people!"
Wu Sangui stomped Lei Ming to the ground and shouted, "Where is your father?"
Lei Ming groaned, "I don't know. I really don't know."
Wu Sangui pressed down on his foot and asked again, "What about the steamed buns?"
"...Then I have no idea." Lei Ming had already sensed that our group was unusual; his voice had changed. I used mind-reading on him several times and found that he wasn't lying.
Liu Bang, who arrived late, had already learned the general situation and said to me, "Let's change it. This is the only way now. The longer we delay, the more dangerous it will be for Baozi."
I said, "Who will talk to Lei Laosi?"
"Wait a minute," Liu Bang said, walking over to sit next to Lei Ming and putting his arm around his shoulder like an old friend. "How many sons does your father have?"
Lei Ming said tremblingly, "It's just me."
"Hmm, do I usually take good care of you?"
"……good."
Liu Bang asked in a questioning tone, "You said you'd trade you and your father for Xiaoqiang's wife, would your father agree?"
Lei Ming said with a sob in his voice, "Big brother, I really don't know anything, and I don't understand why you arrested me. If my father has offended any of you, I apologize on his behalf..."
Liu Bang chuckled and said, "You can't do it for him. Now you'd better hope your father agrees readily, or I'll chop you into mincemeat, cook you, and send you to your father." As he said this, Liu Bang lowered his voice and whispered in Lei Ming's ear, "—I've done that before."
Having learned his lesson from Liu Bang, Xiao Liu fawned over him upon their reunion, saying, "Brother Liu, I'll get the knife right now." Being a former thug, he assumed Liu Bang was just bluffing Lei Ming, so he made a show of force. Little did he know Liu Bang had actually done it. Lei Ming, though cowardly, had grown up in the underworld and sensed Liu Bang's true intentions. Xiao Liu's meddling caused him to burst into tears.
Liu Bang patted Lei Ming on the shoulder like an older brother and said to me, "Xiao Qiang, call Boss Lei. Don't mention that Young Master Lei is homesick yet, just listen to his tone."
After fighting all night, this was the first time I'd contacted Lei Laosi. Although communication is very convenient now, Lei Laosi and I both understood that if he made a move, I had to respond, and vice versa. There was no need for idle chatter. Now that the battle was over, it was time to talk business. I called him first, still keeping a low profile.
The call took quite a while to connect, it seemed there were still quite a few people in contact with Lei Laosi. Aside from a slightly hoarse voice, Lei Laosi seemed calm. When he recognized me, he suddenly said in a tone of realization, "Was it you who did tonight?"
I said, annoyed, "Then who did you think it was?" They said we could be tacitly opposed enemies, but it turns out they didn't take me seriously, and never even considered me a worthy opponent until their death...
Lei Laosi said, "It's not that I haven't thought about you, but I just can't figure out where you get such great power?"
I said, "Boss Lei, we have no grudges against each other. I had no choice but to do this. If you release my wife now, I'll compensate you for all your losses tonight. If you still have any lingering resentment, I can even bring you some snacks in public to apologize..."
To be honest, the money Lei Laosi lost tonight wasn't a problem at all; he could easily afford ten or a hundred times more. But everyone understood that it was impossible for him to continue his local glory. In the underworld, Lei Laosi's reputation had been completely shattered.